We saw the sons of Anak, (the descendants of the Nephilim) there, and we were like
grasshoppers in our own
eyes.
-Numbers
13:33
Jubal, son of Lamech looked over the desert at the edge of his oasis. His sharp eyes picked out a caravan in the distance. They were coming froma nother oasis, perhaps even the one that his brother Tubal-Cain worked his wonders at. Jubal played the lyre, and the flute, both of which he had lovingly carved from the hardwoods available from the east. However, Tubal-Cain had been able to reinforce the lyre with metal banding along the spine, giving it a far better sound. Jubal had made Tubal-Cain promise to send such a sheath for his flute as soon as possible with one of the caravans.
The caravan was close enough to see the Nephil guards that came fore and rear before Jubal rose to extend the hospitality of the oasis. Those guards always made him nervous, but they had to have some effect on the bandits that were beginning to infiltrate the trade routes as well. The giants stood over 6 cubits, with pale skin that should have been blistered red in the fierce sunlight. As far as Jubal could tell however, they appeared cool and at ease with the world. Quickly, Jubal sought out the trade master of the caravan. "Has my brother Tubal-Cain sent anything with you?"
The caravan master laughed, "So impatient, young one. You have not even reached your first hundred years. See, though, I do have something from your brother has sent you. His work is held in such high regard that he must favor you greatly to spend so much time on this thing you want."
Jubal was so excited that he fairly threw away the basket that Tubal-Cain had used to cover the prized flute sheath. Then he remembered proper etiquette, and thanked the caravan master, inviting him to his home for the midday meal. The master declined, stating that he wished to continue one to the next settlement before nightfall. Lamech's middle son, Noah, was demanding yet more gopher wood. "You'd think that he would have settled down by now," Jubal declared, "I mean, he's married and middle aged and all."
"It is not for the young to wonder about the ways of their elders, Jubal," reminded the driver. Just as the caravan master raised his hand to signal continuing travel,a set of crying whoops rose from behind the rocks in the desert. The sand fairly seemed to sprout bandits, hungry for the caravan's riches, and the well watered land of the oasis. Jubal watched helplessly as the bandits raced into a circle, surrounding the beasts of burden and a carts of the caravan.
Just before the circle closed, however, the Nephil guards sprang into action. Moving with the speed of thought, they pulled forth their bronze swords, each one longer and heavier than any three of the bandit's weapons. The Nephil waded intot he bandits, their blades flashing in the hot sun. At first, they seemed hopelessly outnumbered, each soldier visible only because of their great height. The bandits began to thin though, as more and more bodies built up on the bloody red sands. As for the Nephil, they seemed to not notice wounds that would have felled any normal man. After minutes that stretched like hours to Jubal, nearly forty bandits were stretched out on the sands, along with three of the eight Nephil. The others walked among their fallen comrades. Jubal shivered, even in the hot sun, for he knew what would come now. Any Nephil that could not rise within the space of five coughs would be dispatched with as much emotion as the bandits had been.
The caravan was soon ready to go, with their desire to travel on redoubled by the attack. Jubal barely noticed the departure, because he was lost in thought. The Nephil were no doubt heroes, and mighty warriors. They were the sons of the Sons of God, a lineage any man would be proud to claim in his family. Yet, Jubal could not help thining that no one would desire such a man for his sister's husband.
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